The Impact of AI on Skilled Worker Jobs — We Are Not Immune

 

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly reshaping – and in some case, re-inventing - the labour market — not just in routine roles but also in highly skilled professions. It’s interesting to see that organisations like J.P. Morgan to tech consultancies are already seeing AI influence job growth patterns and the very nature of professional work. This is across most industries, including AV industry.

What The Major Players Are Saying

If we  have a look at a few statistics, J.P. Morgan’s Global Research highlights that AI has already begun to affect employment patterns, particularly among college graduates in fields tied to technology and design. Their research shows that majors such as computer engineering, graphic design, and industrial engineering — all foundational to network and AV systems design — have experienced rising unemployment rates, suggesting that AI exposure may be disrupting demand for traditional roles. In some tech subsectors like computer systems design, job growth has slowed noticeably since large language models became widely available.

At the same time however, J.P. Morgan analysts acknowledge AI’s role in boosting productivity and reducing time and costs in creative and technical tasks, including code, images, and audio-visual content generation — which are directly relevant to professionals in network and systems design.

Some Broader Insights

According to labour market analyses, AI tends to reshape jobs rather than wipe them out completely:

• Many workers are using AI to assist, and even enhance their capabilities — automating the more repetitive parts of complex tasks such as routine code generation, documentation, or system configuration — while humans focus on strategic and creative work.
• Across industries, roles most affected by AI have slower job growth, but demand is rising for skills that allow workers to collaborate with AI tools, shifting emphasis from degrees to practical competencies.

For our industry, these trends are particularly relevant in areas like computer network design and audio-visual systems integration, where AI can assist with network planning, simulation, automated configuration, and even design documentation — but human expertise remains crucial for the more intangible stuff - strategic decision making, complex problem solving, client interaction, and bespoke system design.

What This Means for Computer Network & AV Designers

For skilled professionals in network and AV systems:

• Yes, task automation is a real thing, but it’s primarily affecting routine sub-tasks like configuration templates, basic signal flow documentation, and initial design drafts.
• AI works best as a collaborator, a colleague if you will, allowing designers to explore more sophisticated solutions, optimise performance faster, and iterate with greater speed and precision.
• Upskilling matters: This is where it gets important, as workers with advanced AI literacy — who can interpret, correct and guide AI outputs — are becoming more valuable than those focused only on traditional workflows.

So for those in the areas like network design or AV systems, AI isn’t a replacement for expert judgement, but it is changing the skill composition of jobs, (what the job entails essentially) emphasising adaptability, systems thinking, and AI-assisted workflows.

So – It’s Change Without Elimination?

AI’s impact on skilled jobs seems like it’s one of those double-edged sword scenarios — it no doubt accelerates efficiency and creates new opportunities, but it also challenges traditional roles. If we look at what firms like J.P. Morgan are saying, that certain tech design disciplines face employment shifts and slowing growth, but demand for creative problem-solving, integration expertise, and human oversight is still there. Hopefully for a long time to come...

The key takeaway for professionals in tech design sectors is that embracing AI as a tool — rather than viewing it as a threat — can be the most effective way to stay future-proof.